Cinder woke to the smell of bacon and half remembered dreams that had a sizzling quality. Turning her head, she saw Illiana crouching over the heating stone, her slim body completely enveloped in the starry cloak. An objection rose, but she swallowed it down. If the bacon attracted the Gobbo she’d just toss him a strip to distract him and then stab him in the back.
“I hope you're cooking enough to share.” Cinder said as she pushed herself upright.
“Course. Got a couple pounds at least.” Illiana said, using a knife to flip a strip, keeping her hand within the sleeve of the cloak.
Cinder stretched and went to stand besides Illiana. She couldn’t resist the urge to pat the furry hood and the motion turned into more of pet. Illiana didn’t object and even tilted her head slightly.
“Do I wanna know where you got it?” Cinder asked.
“Mmmm? Oh. I summoned it.” Illiana said.
“Summoned it? I didn’t know you could do that. Isn’t that usually a priest thing?” Cinder squatted to inspect the meat. The uncooked portion was sitting beside the cookstone on very mundane looking butcher paper.
“Decided that a belly full of meat was worth the mana, all I got left is quick oats.” Illiana stabbed a strip and offered it Cinder, forestalling any more questions as she took the strip and blew on it.
“By K’arl’s great justice! Is that bacon?” Barnaby yawned and stretched around the words.
“Yep! We’re going to find that burial chamber today and I’m not facing that asshole on an empty stomach again.” Illiana turned to smile. Her mouth and chin were the only parts of her face not hidden the deep shadow of the cloak’s hood.
Again? Cinder wondered. Archmagus Ferrious has been dead for centuries. Far as she knew, Illiana was human. Wizards were often older than they looked, but she’d never gotten that impression from Illiana before. More bacon put off the question.
The group made short work of the bacon and then the quick oats. Cinder found herself watching Illiana like well, not a hawk but more like an anxious house cat. She didn’t remember Illiana ever being so chatty after taking the last watch. Now she was practically perky, swaddled in that way too big cloak. Was it just the extra mana and confidence from the cloak?
They packed up and exited the hidden passage. The spider corpse was where they had left it.
“Oh I totally forgot about the spider.” Illiana exclaimed. “The legs can be good eating. Could have saved my mana.”
“If you want to die horribly.” Barnaby snorted. “Who knows what sort of terrible poisons riddle its flesh.”
“Depends what it eats down here.” Illiana’s voice shifted to a familiar smarty pants lecture mode. “That's a trap-door spider and probably not a designed part of this mausoleum, probably grown by ambient magic instead of a purposeful spell. Unless it's been living on poisonous creatures, the flesh shouldn’t be toxic. It probably eats mostly the orcs and goblins that ventured down here.”
“I don’t think I’d consider either the goblins or Orcs that lived on the previous floor non toxic.” Cinder’s stomach flip flopped, and she tasted bile.
“Eating evil is not very sanitary.” Barnaby said with a nod. “Have you had to eat goblin before mage?”
“Uhhh, no. Of course not.” Illiana coughed. “That be… disgusting. Anyway, which door are we venturing down?”
Cinder frowned at Illiana but turned her attention to the three doorways, examining each one in turn. They all appeared identical. “Lets try the center one first?”
“Okay. I’ll go scope it out.” Illiana giggled. Her cloak pulsed and an Illiana made of stars ran for the dark doorway.
Both Cinder and Barnaby watched it disappear into the darkness with concern.
“What if the monsters see the glow?” Barnaby asked.
“I glow a lot less than this.” Illiana pointed at her floating globe of light. “And my starself sees pretty good by its own- woo.” Her glowing eyes widened. “Lets hope that this isn’t the right way to the burial chamber.”
“What is it?” Barnaby asked.
“You know the head of a balrog back there?” Illiana gesture toward the secret passage. “I found the rest of him.”